Briggs: After Charlottesville, CEOs aren't afraid of President Trump

President-elect Donald Trump speaks at Carrier during event at the Indianapolis factory announcing that jobs will stay in the US, Thursday, December 1, 2016.(Photo11: Kelly Wilkinson/IndyStar)Buy Photo

There's a CNBC segment that I keep thinking about as Donald Trump's presidency unfolds.

United Technologies Corp. CEO Greg Hayes talked to Jim Cramer in December about his deal with the Trump administration that kept Carrier Corp.'s Indianapolis factory open. Even though Indiana agreed to give Carrier a $7 million incentive package, Hayes acknowledged Carrier could have saved much more money by laying off everyone and moving its furnace production to Mexico.

So why would United Technologies agree to a bad financial deal? Hayes explained.

"I was born at night, but not last night," he said. "I also know that about 10 percent of our revenue comes from the U.S. government. And I know that a better regulatory environment, a lower tax rate can eventually help UTC (in) the long run. And so we weighed all of the things in making the decision with the board."

These comments suggest at least two motivations were at play: Carrier parent company United Technologies feared what an angry Trump administration might do to its government contracts, and Hayes wanted a proverbial seat at the table when Trump was ready to discuss tax reform.

I'm not sure these considerations would be enough to keep Carrier's factory, or any other facility, open today.

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Seven months into Trump's presidency, corporate executives have become the first bloc to walk away from the administration. Two CEO-led groups, the Strategic and Policy Forum and the American Manufacturing Council, dissolved Wednesday after several executives objected to Trump's response to the violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., that led to three deaths.

Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing.(Photo11: Provided by the Alliance for American Manufacturing)

Indiana native Scott Paul, the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, was among the departures, saying on Twitter, "I'm resigning from the Manufacturing Jobs Initiative because it's the right thing for me to do."

While Trump blamed the violence in Charlottesville on "many sides" and has resisted calls to specifically reject white supremacists, corporate executives have been much clearer on the topic.

Wal-Mart CEO Doug McMillon wrote a note to employees that said Trump "missed a critical opportunity to help bring our country together by unequivocally rejecting the appalling actions of white supremacists." Apple CEO Tim Cook also wrote to employees, saying, "I disagree with the president and others who believe that there is a moral equivalence between white supremacists and Nazis, and those who oppose them by standing up for human rights."

President Donald Trump walks in from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington in Washington, Monday, Jan. 23, 2017, before hosting breakfast with business leaders in the Roosevelt Room. Sitting at the table is White House Senior Adviser Steve Bannon, left, and Kevin Plank, founder, CEO and Chairman of Under Armour. Plank drew criticism this week when he praised Trump as an "asset" for the country.(Photo11: AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Kevin Madden, a Republican strategist and senior adviser to Mitt Romney's 2012 presidential campaign, said executives are seizing the moment to fill a leadership vacuum.

"What they've communicated in the time since the decision has been made to dissolve the councils is that now is an even greater time for business leadership from CEOs who can stake out or make the case to public audiences about the importance of these issues, in the absence of leadership elsewhere," Madden said.

Trump might not have been a favorite among corporate executives during the Republican primary, but Madden said they came to see a "short-term benefit to the photo opp" after his election.

Now, it appears, many CEOs are rethinking that strategy, as well as their ties to Trump.

"I think, at the outset of the administration, the folks who made the mistake were the ones who focused on a 'seat at the table,'" Madden said. "Those people right now are looking for a new strategy, or realizing that's a one-dimensional strategy."

Trump so far has not inspired confidence that he can deliver on policies CEOs want, such as tax reform. Madden said it would be a mistake for executives to give up on tax reform, but they also must broaden their outreach to make corporate values clear to employees and customers.

Corporations such as Lilly aren't giving up on their federal policy agendas. But they're also not tying their hopes — or reputations — to the Trump administration.

CEOs of some of the nation's biggest companies have made two things clear in recent days: Trump's messaging on Charlottesville does not match their values, and they're not afraid to offend Trump by saying so.

There was a time, not so long ago, when Trump carried enough influence to convince Carrier to keep its furnace factory open in Indianapolis. Now, CEOs are sending a message that they neither fear nor depend on the Trump administration.

Call IndyStar business columnist James Briggs at (317) 444-6307. Follow him on Twitter: @JamesEBriggs.